UnityPoint Health – Trinity Heart Center held a celebration on Wednesday to recognize survivors of heart disease. The celebration is an annual event that started in 2022. This year, it honored the Pritikin Patients of the Year Tim Long, Sandy Mahon, and Rick Johnson.
Tim Long from Rock Island underwent open heart surgery in August of 2024. Long said one of his surgeons told him his aortic valve was one of the worst they had seen in a heart that was still working.
He found out about his heart problems on a bike ride outside Redwing, Minnesota, when, seven miles into the ride, he passed out.Long says he’s been biking since 1973: “I decided I needed to be responsible to my fellow citizens and drive less.” He has been bicycling to work since then.